Seeking refuge with Allah from Shaytan. Allah the Most High said, “And if there comes to you from Satan an evil suggestion, then seek refuge in Allah. Indeed, He is the Hearing, the Knowing.”

Recitation of the two soorahs al-Falaq and an-Nas, as they have wondrous effect in seeking refuge with Allah from his evil, weakening Shaytan and protection from him. This is why the Messenger, sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam, said: “No person seeks refuge with anything like the Mu`awwidhatayn (soorahs al-Falaq and an-Nas)”. [an-Nasaa’i, 5337]

Recitation of Ayat al-Kursi (2:255).

Recitation of soorah al-Baqarah. The Messenger, sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam, said, “The house in which al-Baqarah is recited is not approached by Shaytan.” [Muslim]

The final part of al-Baqarah. The Messenger, sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam, said, “Whoever recites the two last verses of al-Baqarah at night they will suffice him.” [Muslim]

Recitation of the beginning of soorah Mu’min (Ghafir), until His saying, “wa ilayhi-l-maseer” (to Him is the destination). (i.e. “Ha. Meem. The revelation of the Book is from Allah, the Exalted in Might, the Knowing, the forgiver of sin, acceptor of repentance, severe in punishment, owner of abundance. There is no deity except Him; to Him is the destination.” [40:1-2])

Saying “la ilaha ill Allah wahdahu la sharika lah, lahul mulku wa lahul hamdu wa huwa `ala kulli shay’in qadir” (there is nothing worthy of worship except Allah, He has no partner, His is the Dominion and Praise, and He is able to do all things) a hundred times.

The most beneficial form of protection from Shaytan: abundance of remembrance of Allah, the Exalted.

Ablution and prayer, and they are from among the greatest means of protection, especially at the time of emergence of anger and desire.

“And whoever seeks a religion[a way of life] other than Islam, it will never be accepted of him, and in the Hereafter he will be one of the losers” [Quran-Aal ‘Imraan 3:85]

The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) told us that groups of his ummah would follow the enemies of Allah in some of their rituals and customs.

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:“You will certainly follow the ways of those who came before you, span by span, cubit by cubit, until even if they were to enter a lizard’s hole, you would follow them.” We said, “O Messenger of Allah(pbuh), (do you mean) the Jews and Christians?” He said, “Who else? !” (Hadith-al-Bukhaari )

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “Whoever imitates a people is one of them.” (narrated by Ahmad)

Ruling on Celebrating Valentine Day

Firstly:

Valentines Day is a jaahili Roman festival, which continued to be celebrated until after the Romans became Christian. This festival became connected with the saint known as Valentine who was sentenced to death on 14 February 270 CE. The kuffaar still celebrate this festival, during which immorality and evil are practised widely.

Secondly:

It is not permissible for a Muslim to celebrate any of the festivals of the kuffaar, because festivals come under the heading of shari issues which are to be based on the sound texts.

Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: Festivals are part of shareeah, clear way and rituals of which Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“To each among you, We have prescribed a law and a clear way”

[al-Maaidah 5:48]

“For every nation We have ordained religious ceremonies which they must follow”

[al-Hajj 22:67]

— such as the qiblah (direction faced in prayer), prayer and fasting. There is no difference between their participating in the festival and their participating in all other rituals. Joining in fully with the festival is joining in with kufr, and joining in with some of its minor issues is joining in with some of the branches of kufr. Indeed, festivals are one of the most unique features that distinguish various religions and among their most prominent symbols, so joining in with them is joining in with the most characteristic and prominent symbols of kufr. No doubt joining in with this may lead to complete kufr.

Partially joining in, at the very least, is disobedience and sin. This was indicated by the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) when he said: “Every people has its festival and this is our festival.”

This is worse than joining them in wearing the zinaar (a garment that was worn only by ahl al-dhimmah) and other characteristics of theirs, for those characteristics are man-made and are not part of their religion, rather the purpose behind them is simply to distinguish between a Muslim and a kaafir. As for the festival and its rituals, this is part of the religion which is cursed along with its followers, so joining in with it is joining in with something that is a cause of incurring the wrath and punishment of Allaah.

He also said (may Allaah have mercy on him): It is not permissible for the Muslims to imitate them in anything that is uniquely a part of their festivals, whether it be food, clothing, bathing, lighting fires, refraining from a regular habit, doing acts of worship or anything else. It is not permissible to give a feast or to give gifts, or to sell anything that will help them to do that for that purpose, or to allow children and others to play games that are part of the festivals, or to wear one’s adornments.

To Conclude:

the Mulsims should not do any of their rituals at the time of their festivals; rather the day of their festival should be like any other day for the Muslims. The Muslims should not do anything specific in imitation of them. End quote from Majmoo al-Fataawa (25/329).

Al-Haafiz al-Dhahabi (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: If the Christians have a festival, and the Jews have a festival, it is only for them, so no Muslim should join them in that, just as no Muslim should join them in their religion or their direction of prayer. End quote from Tashabbuh al-Khasees bi Ahl al-Khamees, published in Majallat al-Hikmah (4/193)

The hadeeth to which Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah referred was narrated by al-Bukhaari (952) and Muslim (892) from Aaishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) who said: Abu Bakr came in and there were two young girls of the Ansaar with me who were singing about what had happened to the Ansaar on the day of Buaath. She said: And they were not (professional) singing girls. Abu Bakr said: “Musical instruments of the shaytaan in the house of the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)?!” and that was on the day of Eid. The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “O Abu Bakr, every people has a festival and this is our festival.”

Abu Dawood (1134) narrated that Anas (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: When the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) came to Madeenah, they had two days when they would play. He said: “What are these two days?” They said: “We used to play on these days during the Jaahiliyyah.” The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Allaah has given you instead of them two days that are better than them: the day of al-Adha and the day of al-Fitr.” This hadeeth was classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh Abi Dawood.

This indicates that festivals are among the characteristics by which nations are distinguished, and it is not permissible to celebrate the festivals of the ignorant and the mushrikeen (polytheists).

The scholars have issued fatwas stating that it is haraam to celebrate Valentines Day.

Shaykh Ibn Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) has said:

Celebrating Valentines Day is not permissible for a number of reasons.

1: It is an innovated festival for which there is no basis in Islam.

2: It promotes love and infatuation.

3: It calls for hearts to be preoccupied with foolish matters that are contrary to the way of the righteous salaf (may Allaah be pleased with them).

It is not permissible on this day to do any of the things that are characteristic of this festival, whether that has to do with food, drinks, clothing, exchanging gifts or anything else.

The Muslim should be proud of his religion and should not be a weak character who follows every Tom, Dick and Harry.

The Standing Committee has said:

The clear evidence of the Quraan and Sunnah – and the consensus of the early generations of this ummah – indicates that there are only two festivals in Islam: Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha. Any other festivals that have to do with a person, a group, an event or anything else are innovated festivals, which it is not permissible for Muslims to observe, approve of or express joy on those occasions, or to help others to celebrate them in any way, because that is transgressing the sacred limits of Allaah, and whoever transgresses the sacred limits of Allaah has wronged himself.

If the fabricated festival is also a festival of the kuffaar, then the sin is even greater, because this is imitating them and it is a kind of taking them as close friends, and Allaah has forbidden the believers to imitate them and take them as close friends in His Holy Book.

And it is proven that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Whoever imitates a people is one of them.”

Valentine’s Day comes under this heading because it is an idolatrous Christian festival, so it is not permissible for a Muslim who believes in Allaah and the Last Day to observe it or approve of it or congratulate people on it. Rather he has to ignore it and avoid it, in obedience to Allaah and His Messenger, and so as to keep away from the causes that incur the wrath and punishment of Allaah.

It is also haraam for the Muslim to help people to celebrate this or any other haraam festival by supplying any kind of food or drink, or buying or selling or manufacturing or giving or advertising etc., because all of that is cooperating in sin and transgression and is disobedience towards Allaah and His Messenger (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him).

Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Help you one another in Al‑Birr and At‑Taqwa (virtue, righteousness and piety); but do not help one another in sin and transgression. And fear Allaah. Verily, Allaah is Severe in punishment”[al-Maaidah 5:2]

The Muslim must adhere to the Book of Allaah and the Sunnah in all his affairs, especially at times of fitnah when evil is widespread. He should be smart and avoid falling into the misguidance of those who have earned Allaah’s anger and who have gone astray, and the evildoers who have no fear of Allaah and who do not have any pride in being Muslims. The Muslim must turn to Allaah and seek His guidance and remain steadfast in following it, for there is no Guide except Allaah and no one can make a person steadfast but Him.

Shaykh Ibn Jibreen (may Allaah preserve him) has said:

Firstly: it is not permissible to celebrate these innovated festivals, because it is an innovation for which there is no basis in Islam. It comes under the heading of the hadeeth of Aaishah (may Allaah be pleased with her), according to which the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Whoever introduces anything into this matter of ours that is not part of it will have it rejected.”

Secondly: it involves imitating the kuffaar and copying them by venerating that which they venerate and respecting their festivals and rituals, and imitating them in something that is part of their religion. In the hadeeth it says: “Whoever imitates a people is one of them.”

Thirdly: it results in evils and haraam things such as wasting time, singing, music, extravagance, unveiling, wanton display, men mixing with women, women appearing before men other than their mahrams, and other haraam things, or things that are a means that leads to immorality. That cannot be excused by the claim that this is a kind of entertainment and fun. The one who is sincere towards himself should keep away from sin and the means that lead to it.

And he said:

Based on this, it is not permissible to sell these gifts and roses, if it is known that the purchaser celebrates these festivals or will give these things as gifts on those days, so that the seller will not be a partner of the one who does those innovations.

How can anyone in the Ummah really enjoy this Haraam Occasion when there is so much brutality and suffering going on in the world today. The rivers of blood flow freely from the veins of our brothers and sisters from across the Muslim world.

Celebrating unislamic occassions like Valentines Day , New year, Christmas and shouting the names of musical heroes and watching Bollywood & Hollywood Movies drown out the screams coming from the dungeons of Uzbekistan where brothers and sisters are boiled alive in vats of water.

How many will take out valuable time and spend it for the upliftment of Islam? How many will sacrifice for our kin in Gaza , Kashmir, Afghanistan, Chechnya, Palestine, and Iraq? There are many more killing fields as well across the Asian and Arab world. Will you climb on theatre chairs and express your rage over Guantanamo Bay and other gulags where our brothers and sisters are being tortured, raped, sodomized, beaten, and burned? Or will you just switch off and enjoy with the Kuffar in celebrating this evil custom?

Oh,Muslims,wake up!
The Ummah is not bleeding; it is haemorrhaging.

Anas Bin Malik (ra) said; “When the Messenger of Allah Muhammad(pbuh) came to Medina, the people had two holidays from the days of Jahiliyyah(ignorance). He (pbuh) said, “When I came to you, you had two holidays you used to celebrate in jahiliyyah. Allah has replaced them for you with better days, the day of Fitr and the day of slaughter (Adha).”

VALENTINES DAY IS AN UNILSAMIC CUSTOM THAT HAS NO BASIS IN ISLAM AND IS PRESENTLY BEING PROMOTED BY CAPITALIST FOR COMMERCIAL REASONS….

Listen to the pain of your global family! The enemies of Allah are destroying Islam and we are following in their footsteps!

Be pro active and DO NOT- ENGAGE, SUPPORT OR ENCOURAGE THIS EVIL….!!!

If you were intending to engage in this haraam practice and Now changed your mind, then do a noble deed by donating the money to an ISLAMIC CHARITABLE CAUSE which will make you the BELOVED of ALLAH and will earn you an immense reward in the everlasting life of the hereafter!

Several years ago an Imaam moved to London. He often took the bus from his home to the downtown area. Some weeks after he arrived, he had occasion to ride the same bus. When he sat down, he discovered that the driver had accidentally given him twenty pence too much change. As he considered what to do, he thought to himself, you better give the twenty pence back. It would be wrong to keep it. Then he thought, oh forget it, it’s only twenty pence. Who would worry about this little amount? Anyway, the bus company already gets too much fare; they will never miss it. Accept it as a gift from Almighty Allah and keep quite.

When his stop came, the Imaam paused momentarily at the door, then he handed the twenty pence back to the driver and said ” Here, you gave me too much change.” The driver with a smile replied ” Aren’t you the new Imaam in this area? have been thinking lately about going to worship at your mosque. I just wanted to see what you would do if I gave you too much change.” When the Imaam stepped off the bus, his knees became weak and soft. He had to grab the nearest light pole and held for support, and looked up to the heavens and cried “Oh Allah, I almost sold Islam for twenty pence!” Remember, we may never see the impact our actions have on people. Sometimes we are the only knowledge of Quran someone will read, or the only Islam a non-Muslim will see. What we need to provide, InshaAllah is an example for others to see. Be careful and be honest everyday, because you never know who is watching your actions and judging you as a Muslim.

” And whosoever fears Allah and keeps his duty to Him, He will make a way for him to get out (from every difficulty).
And He will provide him from (sources) he never could imagine. And whosoever puts his trust in Allah,

then He will suffice him. Verily, Allah will accomplish his purpose. Indeed Allah has set a measure for all things. (At-Talaq 65:2-3)”

Message from ustadz aman Abdurrahman

All praises only belong to Allah, Who tests His slaves with ease and hardship. May Salawat and salam be showered upon His Prophet, followed by his household and Sahabahs.

Ikhwani fillah, know that the value of tawheed is high and the consequences is huge, to the extent that it must be paid with a lot of sacrifices, whether it be in the form of being killed, cruelty of torture by the enemies, as well as imprisonment or seizure of wealth and properties.

The commitment to tawheed in this era of the ghurbah will always be enveloped by the feeling of fear and worry towards the cruelty of the enemies, like Prophet Musa and his followers in Egypt and just as experienced by Rasulullah and the Sahabahs in the early period of Islam. But don’t let those feelings of fear and worry cause you to abandon this tawheed, as that is the character of the people whom Allah condemn in His verse:

Tawheed

“There are among men some who serve Allah, as it were, on the verge: if good befalls them, they are, therewith, well content; but if a trial comes to them, they turn on their faces: they lose both this world and the Hereafter: that is loss for all to see!” [Al Hajj : 11]

Namely, the people who want to commit to tawheed when the condition is easy and happy, and when the condition is grappling and dreadful, they abandon it.

But you must become the people whose belief in the truth of this tawheed increases in this time of ferocity with regards to the enmity of the thaghut and their ansar towards the adherents of this tawheed, who are not willing to be enslaved by them. But, were you to turn away from this tawheed, then Allah will replace you with others who love Allah Ta’ala more, just as He says:

“If ye turn back (from the Path), He will substitute in your stead another people; then they would not be like you!” [Muhammad: 38].

And His verse:

“O ye who believe! if any from among you turn back from his Faith, soon will Allah produce a people whom He will love as they will love Him.” [Al Maidah: 54]

Ikhwani fillah….. refrain for a moment from the pursuit of pleasures that can never end… Pay attention to your brothers who are currently in prison… be polite to the families of the Shuhada’s and those who are detained in the path of Allah, they are the Fuqarâ’ (poor) who are ashamed to ask, they are only the Hawa and the children who are incapable of doing anything except in shedding the tears of sadness and sorrow, they are the weak people whose do’a are answered by Allah. Rasulullah said, “That you are given victory and rizq is only because of the weak people amongst you.”

Ikhwani… What I believe in matters of tawheed along with their relations to today’s reality have been poured out in my writings and translations, be fervent in learning, be graceful in accepting the truth and always make do’a to Allah and ask for guidance. Don’t let shubhah shadow the faith because when shubhah is allowed to exist in the thoughts, it will become a disaster when accompanied by the desires of wanting to live freely and lavishly, like those who do not practice tawheed.

Therefore, bear the shubhah with faith that are sourced from the ‘ilm of Al Kitab and As Sunnah, and face the desires with patience.

I pray to Allah to give guidance, fortitude and patience, and husnul khatimah to us all….

My mom only had one eye. I hated her… she was such an embarrassment. My mom ran a small shop at the local market. She collected little weeds and such to sell… anything for the money that we needed, she was such an embarrassment.

There was this one day during primary school. I remember that it was field day, and my mom came. I was so embarrassed. How could she do this to me? I cast her a hateful look and ran away. The next day at school…’your mom only has one eye?!’ and they taunted me. I wished that my mom would just disappear from this world, so I said to my mom, ‘Mom, why don’t you have the other eye?! You’re making me a laughing stock. Why don’t you just die?’ My mom didn’t respond.

I guess I felt a little bad, but at the same time it felt good to think that I had said what I’d wanted to say all this time. Maybe it was because my mom didn’t punish me, but I didn’t think that I had hurt her feelings. That night…I woke up and went to the kitchen to get a glass of water. My mom was crying there, so quietly, as if she was afraid that she might wake me. I took a look at her and then turned away.

Because of the thing I had said to her earlier, there was something pinching at me in the corner of my heart. Even so, I hated my mother who was crying out of her one eye. So I told myself that I would grow up and become successful, because I hated my one-eyed mom and our desperate poverty. Then I studied really hard. I left my mother and came to Seoul and studied, and got accepted in the Seoul University with all the confidence I had. Then, I got married. I bought a house of my own. Then I had kids too. Now I’m living happily as a successful man.

I like it here because it’s a place that doesn’t remind me of my mom. This happiness was getting bigger and bigger, until someone unexpected came to see me ‘what?! Who’s this?!’ …It was my mother…Still with her one eye. It felt as if the whole sky was falling apart on me. My little girl ran away, scared of my mom’s eye. And I yelled at her, ’who are you? I don’t know you!!!’ I screamed at her ‘How dare you come to my house and scare my daughter! GET OUT OF HERE! NOW!!!’ And to this, my mother quietly answered, ‘oh, I’m so sorry. I may have gotten the wrong address,’ and she disappeared. Thank God… she didn’t recognise me. I was quite relieved. I told myself that I wasn’t going to care, or think about this for the rest of my life.

Then a wave of relief came upon me…one day, a letter regarding a school reunion came to my house. I lied to my wife saying that I was going on a business trip. After the reunion, I went down to the old shack, that I used to call a house…just out of curiosity there, I found my mother lying on the cold ground. But I did not shed a single tear. She had a piece of paper in her hand…. it was a letter to me.

She wrote:

My son…

I think my life has been long enough now. And… I won’t visit Seoul anymore… but would it be too much to ask if I wanted you to come visit me once in a while? I miss you so much. And I was so glad when I heard you were coming for the reunion. But I decided not to go to the school…. For you… I’m sorry that I only have one eye, and that I was an embarrassment for you. You see, when you were very little, you got into an accident, and lost your eye. As a mother, I couldn’t bear watching you having to grow up with only one eye… so I gave you mine… I was so proud of my son that was seeing a whole new world for me, in my place, with my eye. I was never upset at you for anything you did. The couple times that you were angry with me. I thought to myself, ‘it’s because he loves me.’ I miss the times when you were still young around me.

I miss you so much. I love you. You mean the world to me

My world shattered!!!

Then I cried for the person who lived for me… My MOTHER

Narrated by Abu Huraira

A man came to Allah’s Apostle and said, “O Allah’s Apostle! Who is more entitled to be treated with the best companionship by me?” The Prophet said, “Your mother.” The man said. “Who is next?” The Prophet said, “Your mother.” The man further said, “Who is next?” The Prophet said, “Your mother.” The man asked for the fourth time, “Who is next?” The Prophet said, “Your father.”

“And We sent not you (O Muhammad), but as a mercy for all worlds.” Surah Al-Anbia : 107

This post is devoted to Our Beloved Prophet On This Auspicious Occasion of Eid Milad un-Nabi

“Oh Lord, increase my marveling at You!”

I fell in love with the sweetness of this wonderful supplication of our Beloved Prophet (SA). How far can love reach? The Man of the highest illumination who ever lived asked His Lord to heighten His adoration towards Him! Allah the highest says in the Holy Quran:

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“There has now come to you a Messenger from amongst yourselves; grievous to Him is your suffering; anxious is He over you; towards the believers, kind and compassionate.”

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“He lowered unto the believers His wing of tenderness through mercy…” and “was the guardian of believers and nearer to them then their selves.”

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The Prophet’s greatness does not lie in His superiority of knowledge, wisdom, intellect or insight in every field, over every person, but in His poverty, nothingness, humility, slave-hood and modesty. He was the supreme authority on all levels, but in reality He was the Jewel of all the Allah’s servants. The greatness of His heart demonstrates that poverty is our greatest wealth. The more Allah blessed and favored our Beloved Prophet, the more He became humble and submissive. Everyday He asked for forgiveness a hundred times and prayed repeatedly to His Lord: “Glory be to You, we have not been able to know You as Your knowledge requires, O Know One! Glory be to You, we have not been able to worship You as Your worship requires, O Worshiped One!”

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All things begin with Him; all things are sealed by Him. He is the most dignified of men. He is the pride of humanity, the most Beloved and the most desired Prophet of Allah the Highest. But our most Beloved of hearts acted like any other person, this is the sublime secret of His being, the treasury of pure modesty. The eternal beauty of Allah is reflected in His tender heart in its fullest splendor. He never asked for anything, He never sought anything from His Lord.

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As soon as He was born, He prostrated Himself and said: “My community, My community. On the heavenly ascension, Allah wished to endow Him with all the riches of Paradise in order to please Him, but He answered with only one word: “My community, My community.”

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Does a greater beauty shine from a human heart?

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The light of Muhammad (SA) is the essence of all creation. There is nothing closer to Allah’s Light than the reality of Muhammad (SA). Both illuminated and illuminating he cried out: “Oh Lord, show us things as they are!”

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Prophet Muhammad (SA) encouraged equal treatment of slaves and kings.

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Rulers gained humility, slaves gained honor, tyrants gained peace and beggars gained dignity. This revolutionary change of character, making simple, primitive people into the highest of saints, is certainly the most outstanding miracle of our Prophet Muhammad (SA).

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Nobody impressed the whole of humanity so deeply. He is the key to divine knowledge, opening the eye of the heart which sees and hears the truth. He is the point where real human perfection starts, He is the goal of our all possible accomplishments. With Him we begin, with Him we end.

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Allah hides Himself, His essence from His believers, but He lets us know and find His reality through the beauty and goodness of Muhammad (SA).

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There are 70,000 veils between the servant and his Lord. These veils are screens for the truth.

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In the words of Sheikh Abd Al-Qadir Al-Gilani:

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“All created beings are a veil, with the exception of the Messenger of Allah (SA). For He is the doorway and means by which the goal is reached.”

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Sheikh Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi said:

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“All created beings have a shadow, with the exception of our Messenger (SA) for He is the first light, the source of light. The source of existence has no shadow. With this light we can see and understand Allah’s truth.”

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In true humility, The Messenger of Allah says:

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“My figure amongst the noble Prophets is this; a man builds a wall; he has finished it, except it needs one more brick; I am this brick. After me, there will be no more Messengers or Prophets.”

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“Say of me: The Servant of Allah and His Messenger (SA), so that you do not fall into exaggeration that the people manifest with regard to my brother Jesus.”

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For the perfect lover of the truth, He represents the satisfier of all our needs. To marvel at Him is the ascension of our souls. To hear of Him makes what is difficult easy, because Divine grace radiates on whoever contemplates Him. Sending Him salutations and blessings brings an immediate expansion of love in our hearts. Contemplating Him brings the greatest joy and illuminates the face of our soul. Wishing peace for His soul means true salvation, and touches the deepest interior of our hearts.